Giveaway: SELF Magazine’s Workout in the Park!

Way back in 2008, I first heard about SELF Workout in the Park and decided to attend. What I originally thought would be a few hundred women showing up to yoga and pilates actually turned out to be a humongous and incredibly inspiring fitness festival, with several thousand women of all shapes and sizes showing up to share their love of fitness. As a bonus, I got meet Jillian Michaels and Biggest Loser contestant Jenn Widder, and Jillian gave me a personal lecture about my restaurant eating habits. (I could really use another one of those again…)

In 2011, I went back to Workout in the Park with a different group of friends. This time, we knew what to expect, and got there right on time. (Though I didn’t learn my lesson about gearing up for an intense day, and still went out for Cinco de Mayo the night before). Fortunately, we did a lot of working out and I think I more than burned off the margaritas I had the night before – I was exhausted by the end! It was a gorgeous day to be out in the sun, and that year I spent a lot more time making use of the workouts (and collecting free samples) than meeting the celebs.

I just heard about this year’s event and its headline trainer via Fit Bottomed Girls, and I have to admit, I may go back to the first year’s model of celeb-stalking instead of really working out… because I just heard that hottie Dolvett Quince from The Biggest Loser is going to be the guest star! He seems too nice to give me nearly the ass-kicking Jillian did, but I have to admit I wouldn’t mind just getting to stare at him for a while… those abs are all the motivation I need 🙂 Given how much fun I had last year trying out all the workout classes (they do tons of 15 minute versions consecutively, so you get to try out a lot of different stuff and see what you like best), though, I’m torn… and will probably just have to rustle up a big group of friends to go so we can split duties between waiting in line and getting a good spot to workout. I am so excited to be out in Central Park, having a blast and burning calories on what’s usually a gorgeous spring day!

As luck would have it, a few hours after I heard that the event was coming up, I got an email from Self asking me to help spread the word about the event (boo, more competition for Dolvett) – and offering up two tickets for readers! To share the love, I’m offering one ticket to two winners, and then you’re welcome to either go with me or find a friend who’s willing to pony up for a ticket (they’re $20 normally, and include a year’s subscription to Self, so between that and all the free samples, it’s more than worth your while).

Here’s the official spiel:

SELF Magazine’s wildly popular outdoor health, fitness and wellness festival, Workout in the Park is coming back to New York on Saturday, May 12, 2012 at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park from 11:00 A.M. – 3:00 P.M. SELF Workout in the Park is a unique experience filled with a day of fun and invigorating classes from CRUNCH gym, beauty and fashion consultations, nutritional know-how, and tons of freebies and giveaways from SELF and our sponsors. The event, which sells out in New York each year, has been inspiring tens of thousands of women for 19 years to energize their lives.

Workout in the Park 2012 will unveil the hottest new exercise trends from CRUNCH including:
• Fly Girls— Stay super fly by counting down to your favorite 90s pop hits with easy-to-follow dance routines.
• POUND Rockout Workout— Fuse pilates-inspired movement with the art of making music at this trendy new class that uses Ripstix™, weighted drumsticks, to work the core, upper, and lower body.
• Hippie Yoga— i.e. yoga that focuses on opening up the hips! Leaves you feeling restored and renewed like no other.

WHAT: Self Magazine’s Workout in the Park
WHERE: Central Park (Rumsey Playfield)
WHO: SELF Magazine and thousands of women seeking their best summer bodies
• Special Celebrity Host: Dolvett Quince, celebrity trainer and star of NBC’s The Biggest Loser: Dolvett will share his fitness and motivational tips on how to shape your body, improve self-esteem and create an overall desire for better health! Plus, Dolvett will give you some easy workout moves on the Main Stage, guaranteed to help tone up and slim down using only a chair!
• Special Guest Emcee: Danielle Monaro of Z100: Danielle will bring her amazing energy to the event, giving the scoop on what’s happening at WIP throughout the day.
• Special Instructor: Louis Van Amstel, dance coach on Dancing with the Stars: Louis will lead his LaBlast workout for all attendees to try
WHEN: Saturday, May 12th, 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM; Rain or Shine
COST: $20 in advance ONLY at www.SELFWorkoutinthePark.com

To enter the giveaway for a free ticket, just leave a comment telling me your favorite workout class that you’d love to see demoed in 15 minutes or less. This giveaway will be open until 11:59pm EST on Sunday May 6, and the winner will be announced Monday May 7.

PS – For a double round of free fitness fun, don’t forget to let me know if you’re able to come to my free Figure 4 class on Sunday, May 13.